Thomas Aquinas Commentary Job 2:1-6

"Again it came to pass on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah, that Satan came also among them to present himself before Jehovah. And Jehovah said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered Jehovah, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And Jehovah said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job? for there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and turneth away from evil: and he still holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause. And Satan answered Jehovah, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. But put forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will renounce thee to thy face. And Jehovah said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thy hand; only spare his life." — Job 2:1-6 (ASV)

There are three kinds of human goods: those of the soul, of the body, and external things. These goods are ordered in such a way that the body exists for the sake of the soul, while external things exist for the sake of both the body and the soul. Therefore, just as a person has a perverse intention if he subordinates the goods of the soul to prosperity in external goods, so too does he have a perverse intention if he orders the goods of the soul to the health of the body.

Job truly abounded in virtuous acts, which are the goods of the soul. This was obvious to all, and so the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job...? (Job 1:8). But Satan was slanderously suggesting that Job performed virtuous acts for the sake of temporal goods, just as evil people, whose prince is Satan, maliciously judge the intentions of the good. This slander was refuted by the fact that after losing his external goods, Job remained steadfast in virtue. This sufficiently proves that his intention was not focused on external goods.

It remained, then, for the perfect demonstration of Job’s virtue, to show that his intention was not bent toward the health of his own body. Therefore, divine judgment is again invoked to prove this. This is what the text says: Again on a certain day when the sons of God came to stand in the presence of the Lord, and Satan also came among them and stood in his presence. The Lord said to Satan: Where do you come from? Since these words have already been explained at length, there is no need to linger on them here. It is enough to note that because this passage recounts another action, another day is introduced, just as at the beginning of Genesis different days are described according to the different kinds of things that were created. Then, what Satan answered when questioned is shown when the text says, From prowling and going about the earth (Job 1:7). This has the same meaning as before.

Once again, the Lord presents Job's virtue as something evident, and so the text continues: The Lord said to Satan: Have you considered my servant Job; there is none like him on earth? He is a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil. Since a certain virtue of blessed Job that was not clear before has now been plainly demonstrated—namely, his constancy in adversity—He therefore now adds, He still holds fast his innocence, that is, after the loss of his temporal goods. From this, the Lord further shows that Satan’s suspicion was slanderous and that his intention was frustrated. And so the text next says, although you moved me against him to afflict him in vain.

In saying, You moved me against him, we must not understand this to mean that God was provoked by anyone into willing something He did not previously will, as is often the case with humans. For according to Numbers 23:19, God is not like a man, that he should lie, nor like a son of man that he should change. Here, Scripture speaks of God figuratively, in a human way. For when people want to do something because of someone’s influence, they are said to be moved by that other person. God, however, wills to do something, and so He does it for a particular reason. Yet He does it without any agitation of mind, because He had the reason for doing it in mind from all eternity.

So, the Lord had arranged from all eternity to afflict Job in time to prove the truth of his virtue, in order to prevent every slander of the wicked. To indicate this, the text says, You moved me against him. When the text adds, to afflict him in vain, this must be understood from the perspective of Satan's intention, not from the perspective of God's intention. Satan, in intending Job's adversity, had desired to lead him into impatience and blasphemy, which did not happen. God, however, permitted this to proclaim Job's virtue openly, which is in fact what happened. Therefore, Job was afflicted in vain from the perspective of Satan's intention, but not from the perspective of God's intention.

Though repulsed, Satan does not rest. He continues his slander, wanting to show that every good thing Job did—even patiently tolerating his adversity—he had done not for the love of God, but for the health of his own body. So the text continues, Then Satan answered the Lord: Skin for skin! All that man has he will give for his life. We must consider that Job had been afflicted in two ways: the loss of his possessions and the loss of his children. Satan, therefore, intends to say that Job had patiently tolerated both afflictions for the sake of his body's health. This, he argues, was not a great virtue but was merely human and common among people.

This is what he means by saying a man—as if anyone, even those without virtue—will easily give skin for skin!, that is, the flesh of another in place of his own. For a man who is not virtuous will insist that anyone else, even those closely related to him, should be afflicted in body rather than himself. For the same reason, any person, regardless of who they are, will give all the external goods he possesses for his life, that is, to preserve his own life. For external goods are sought to preserve life, such as a supply of food, clothing, and other things that comfortably maintain a person's life.

Since someone might say to Satan, “How can you prove that Job patiently bore the loss of his children and possessions because he feared for his own skin and life?” he now adds, as if in answer to this objection: But now, if you do not believe mere words, put forth your hand—that is, exercise your power—and touch his bone and his flesh. This means to afflict him in his body, not only on the surface (which is what “to touch the flesh” means), but also in his innermost part (which is what “to touch the bone” means), so that the touch reaches his very core. And you will see—that is, everyone will be able to clearly perceive—that he will curse you to your face, which must be interpreted as explained before.

Therefore, the Lord willed to show that Job had not served God for the health of his body, just as He had already shown that Job did not serve Him for the sake of external goods. And so the text adds, The Lord said to Satan: Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life. This means, “I grant you power to afflict him in his body, but you cannot take his life.” For God does not completely expose His servants to the will of Satan, but only to a fitting measure, as the Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:13, The faithful God does not suffer you to be tempted beyond what you can endure.